Books make wonderful presents. Books for birthdays. More books for Christmas. Mother’s Day. Father’s Day. Farmer Gary and I take it to the extreme, with books for Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter … you get the picture. Around our house, most books are one-and-done. Upon completion, the volume goes back on the shelf or, occasionally, into the donation basket. But once in a while, there’s something about a book that is almost haunting. A single reading is not enough….
It was close to midnight the other evening when I heard it. A train whistle. In the far-off distance. I love the sound of a train, especially at night. It’s so comforting. I asked my musical brother Dave if he knew exactly what chord the whistle plays. Here’s his reply: I’ve heard a lot of different chords from train whistles, but my favorite (which I’ve heard quite a bit) is a major chord with an added 6th, like F-A-C-D. The add-6 chord…
Although I rarely try to theme each month’s book choices, in January it seems each told the story of transformative life changes, whether in war, living on the land, or in the aftermath of death. Book 1: One Man’s Meat by E. B. White Before E. B. White wrote Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little, he wrote a series of columns for Harper’s Magazine. These chatty essays described his new life on a farm in Maine. Up until that point in…
Farmer Gary loves to read the newspaper. Always has. In fact, he’s declared Wednesday to be Newspaper Day each week, as that’s the day most of the weekly papers arrive in the mail. Each Wednesday, Gary dashes out to check the mailbox, then takes over our breakfast bar with his stack and works his way through the periodicals. Sadly, many of the dailies and almost-dailies he grew up reading are no longer … well, appealing. … but there are still…
I’ll say it before anyone else brings it up: Why would a couple of Empty Nesters add on to their home now that there are only two occupants? Actually, I didn’t happen upon the real reason until after we’d “moved in” following a long summer of loud construction. Why? Because the view is glorious! The east side of our house faces the forest, yet our house’s windows on that side just didn’t do the trick. We needed more windows. Lots…
As I finished up each book this month, I’d tell Farmer Gary: Time for a lighter book. But it wasn’t the weight of the volume that needed changing. With horrifying acts of terrorism around the world and crazed gunmen here in the U.S., it was time for an escape. Somehow, though, each new book was also filled with sorrow. Book 1: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque The title was so familiar, but I’d never before…
My first and last reads in August were each a deep dive into an important female pioneer. Both books are well worth the effort. Book 1: Rememberings by Sinéad O’Connor When Sinéad O’Connor passed away suddenly in late July, I wondered if she’d written a memoir. All I knew of her was she often appeared with a shaved head and that she tore up a photo of the Pope on Saturday Night Live in 1992. Now that I’ve read Rememberings,…
“Hot enough for ya?“ Har-dee-har-har. I used to force a smile back in my working days when a visiting reporter considered that a good conversation starter as we began our walking tour. Especially back in the summer of 1999, when I was pregnant with James all summer, it was a challenge. I tried not to complain much, though, as my communications position was mostly an office job. I’ve heard from several friends and family members this week, the hottest days…
Back when Farmer Gary and I announced our engagement (just-in-time-for-Christmas, 1981), so many of my relatives and college friends chimed in, “My grandparents were farmers!” or “My great-uncle grew up on a farm!” Suddenly, the world was one big farm. I’m experiencing the same with Gary’s family tree. Every ten years, the census report announces this ancestor or that was a farmer. Their children were “farm laborers.” Farmers everywhere! It took a half-second longer than it should have for me…
Book 1: A Midwife’s Story by Penny Armstrong Farmer Gary‘s fascination with all things Amish made this an easy choice at the bookstore years ago. This memoir traces Penny Armstrong’s initial interest in midwifery to her studies in multiple countries. She eventually settles in among the Amish. Lots of interesting stories, most of joyous survival but a few with heart-wrenching outcomes. She had every reason to criticize those-in-power who assumed she was inept, yet her harsh words for hospital deliveries…